Fall Pilot Review – CHASE on NBC

What? CHASE is a lightning-fast drama that drops viewers smack into the middle of a game of cat-and-mouse as a team of U.S. Marshals hunts down America’s most dangerous fugitives. The head of the team is U.S. Marshal Annie Frost, a cowboy boot-wearing deputy whose sharp mind and unique Texas upbringing help her track down violent criminals on the run. The members of Frost’s elite team are Jimmy Godfrey, an East Texas kid who never grew up and is a true American cowboy; Marco Martinez, a good intelligence guy who loves to talk; Daisy Ogbaa, a weapons/tactical specialist and a woman of few words; and Luke Watson, the fresh-faced newcomer, whose Washington, D.C., upbringing did little to prepare him for the Lone Star State.

Who? StarsKelli Giddish as Annie, Cole Hauser as Jimmy, Amaury Nolasco as Marco, Rose Rollins as Daisy, and Jesse Metcalfe as Luke. From Emmy Award-winning executive producer Jerry Bruckheimer (CSI franchise, THE AMAZING RACE) and executive producer Jennifer Johnson (COLD CASE, REUNION, LOST). CHASE is produced by Bonanza Productions Inc. in association with Jerry Bruckheimer Television and Warner Bros. Television. Bruckheimer, Jonathan Littman (CSI franchise, THE AMAZING RACE, COLD CASE) and Johnson serve as executive producers, while KristieAnne Reed co-executive produces. David Nutter (THE MENTALIST, WITHOUT A TRACE, THE X-FILES) directed and serves as an executive producer on the pilot, written by Johnson.

Where/When? NBC, 10/9c Mondays following all new episodes of CHUCK and THE EVENT.

Why (Why Not)? My love for Cole Hauser and Amaury Nolasco aside, CHASE is a perfectly fine show in a perfectly fine and boring world where things are wrapped up in a neat little bow at the end of an investigation. Complete with inside jokes and outsider-joining-the-group humor, the show follows the life of the hunt for a fugitive, and all I can really muster to describe it is that it’s just fine. Kelli Giddish is not meant to be a star yet. I think she needs a few more tries and fails before she finds her footing, and I don’t buy Jesse Metcalfe as a Marshal for anything. Not the worst new show this season (there are two comedies with a shared spot in the bottom), but certainly not the best, or the most important.

How? No need to turn it off if you find it on in the background, but much better as a DVR-and-watch Saturdays kind of show. Choose CASTLE or HAWAII FIVE-O (or Showtime at 10 for the next few weeks).